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Libraries Indiana University Bloomington

Advanced College Project | Education

Library resources for Bloomington affiliates and non-affiliates to discover Education scholarship

Brainstorming Keywords

Identify effective search terms for database and web resources. (From Portland State University.)

Search Strategy Builder

Search Strategy Builder

The Search Strategy Builder is a tool designed to teach you how to create a search string using Boolean logic. While it is not a database and is not designed to input a search, you should be able to cut and paste the results into most databases’ search boxes.

Concept 1 and Concept 2 and Concept 3
Name your concepts here.
Search terms Search terms Search terms
List alternate terms for each concept.

These can be synonyms, or they can be specific examples of the concept.

Use single words, or "short phrases" in quotes

or

or

or

or

or

or

or

or

or

or

or

or

Now, cut and paste the results into the search box of a library database (or Google).
 
The Search Strategy Builder was developed by the University of Arizona Libraries and is used under a Creative Commons License.